A simple thing I do that brings me joy is practicing gratitude. When I am feeling lost and chaotic within my brain, taking a pause to count my blessings really brings me back to the present, and brings me a sense of peace.

I’ve actually been feeling off the past few days, and I haven’t actually sat in stillness to remember all that I have to be grateful for, so I’ll take that opportunity now.

1. I am grateful for my fiancé. The fact that we have built a solid foundation over the past twelve years keeps me at peace as we get closer to our wedding date and starting a family. He has been such a patient, supportive man throughout even the worst of time, and I am so grateful to be loved by him, and so very grateful to love him as well.

2. I am grateful for my cats. It’s so crazy to think we adopted our first cat, Sky, almost nine years ago! She’s so sweet and cuddly and totally my baby. Mushu we rescued under someone’s porch only a few months after we adopted Sky, and at only four weeks old we had to bottle feed her and teach her how to use the litter and she truly did feel like our baby. Deacon we adopted from our old tattoo artist as she was moving out of state and told us she never bonded with him, which of course made me really sad- so we took him in and he is 100% my fiancé’s cat. He is always cuddling with him, and sometimes he will with me too. I feel so lucky to have our three black cats and to have them all here and healthy with us now.

3. I am grateful for our home and everything within in. We are blessed to have electricity, gas, water and all of our appliances and items. The fact that we get to wake up in a bed with a roof over our head is truly a blessing, and that’s not one I want to take for granted. We are so fortunate to have our home.

4. I am grateful for music. Music is something that can help me to escape, but also help me reconnect to myself all at the same time. Singing and dancing along to the songs I love makes me feel so free and happy. I love how there is such a variety of music in the world so that everyone can find something they like.

5. I am grateful for my health. I can walk, talk, breathe, eat and use the bathroom without any assistance or issues, and as someone who has dealt with bouts of horrendous back pain, I am grateful to be where I am today. My heart beats and my lungs breathe all for me without me even having to think about it, and that is a huge blessing. I am also grateful for access to healthcare, as both physical and mental therapy have been so helpful for me and my journey.

Overall, life has joy all around. Sometimes it feels harder to see it/feel it, but focusing on gratitude really helps to bring me back to how wonderful life is.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for this beautiful life.